Rough Roads Lead To You
by S7Angel09
Summary: This is for xxstacylovexx! It starts out as an accident, just a new dance move. Then it happens again. What does Puck do when he thinks Finn is hitting Rachel on purpose and just making it look like an accident? Will he finally admit his feelings for her?
1. Stop

This story is for xxstacylovexx! I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of the characters in this story.

Chapter 1

Stop

Everyone was watching as Finn and Rachel tried a new dance move. For the eighth time. Again Finn spun the wrong way. For the eighth time. But this time everyone heard a crack and Rachel fell to the floor. Finn had hit her in the face, hard. Puck had been watching them and thinking about how badly he wanted to be the one to dance with Rachel. He stood up and ran over next to her. He crouched down and put a hand to her shoulder. "Rach? You okay?" She was face down on the floor but pushed herself up. She had one hand to her face and Puck put an arm around her for support. "I'm fine, thank you Noah."

"Yeah. Sure." He moved her hand aside and saw the redness of her cheek right below her eye. He knew from experience that it was going to hurt even more later. Finn had basically punched her in the eye. Puck stood up and saw everyone around Finn, consoling him and telling him not to feel bad because it was an accident and wasn't his fault. Puck walked over, put his hand on Finn's shoulder, and hit him in the face. The girls and Kurt gasped as the guys grabbed Puck and pulled him away as Finn held his face. "What the hell, dude?"

"You didn't even apologize! You probably did it on purpose!"

Mr. Schue stepped in "Puck, it was an accident and I am sure Finn is sorry."

"Screw that! Where is the friggin' sympathy for Rachel? You know, that girl lying on the damn floor because someone three times her size hit her in the face?"

"Stop."

Puck turned around and looked at Rachel still sitting on the floor.

"What?"

"Stop. Just stop. It was an accident and I am fine. I just want to go home." Rachel stood up and slowly started walking out the door. Puck shook the guys off him and followed her out. She was about to get in her car when Puck caught up to her. He snatched her keys out of her hand and smirked as she turned towards him with narrowed eyes.

"Noah." Puck smiled as he heard the warning in her tone.

"Nope. Sorry, but I am not letting you drive in your condition. It's just not happening."

"I am fine and will have no trouble driving myself home. Please return my keys promptly, Noah."

Puck argued with her for fifteen minutes before she finally agreed to riding home with him.

The next morning, Rachel had to use a ton of makeup to cover the bruise. When she went out to her car, she had to resist the urge to smirk when she saw Noah sitting in his truck in her driveway. "What are you doing here, Noah?"

"Taking you to school. Obviously. Damn, I thought you were super smart."

Rachel rolled her eyes as she jumped into the truck with him. He grinned and gunned it out of her driveway, making her laugh. She then resisted the urge to wince at the pain laughing had caused. She had no idea Noah had seen it.

"Did he apologize yet?"

"No, but-"

"Rachel, stop. Don't make excuses for him. You can use as much makeup as you want, I can still see the bruise." Rachel said nothing because secretly she knew he was right. Every time Finn came near her or touched her that day she flinched. He was starting to get a little upset with her by the time Glee began. Rachel sat next to Puck until Mr. Schue wanted them to try the move again. Puck would have protested, but Rachel's hand on his arm stopped him. They tried the move several times but today it was because of Rachel that it kept failing. She kept shying away every time Finn came near her. Finn had finally lost it. "Seriously, Rachel? It was a freaking accident. Quit acting like I did it on purpose! You are such a drama queen!" Puck stood up and walked over to Rachel, hugging her to him. "Shut the hell up, Finn! Obviously she just doesn't want it to happen again! Neither do I, so knock it off. You yell at her like that again, and you and I are going to have some serious issues." Finn looked ready to explode, but calmed himself down. "Fine. Whatever. Let's try again. I promise it won't happen anymore."


	2. Hurting

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or any of the characters.

Chapter 2

Hurting

He lied. It happened again. This time, Puck swore he saw a small smirk on Finn's face when it happened. Puck flipped out, but he was more worried about Rachel than to go after Finn at the moment. Before he could get to her, Finn had raced to her side and was apologizing.

"I am so sorry Rachel. I just can't get this move down. Maybe we should just drop it and do something else."

Rachel was silent. This time his fist had collided with her collarbone. She could feel it throbbing, but didn't want to stir up anymore trouble so she downplayed the pain. "I'm fine. It's fine. Maybe you're right, though, we should just forget this move." Mr. Schue agreed wholeheartedly and practice ended. Finn stood up and walked right past Rachel, as did everyone else. Except for Puck who knelt down close to her, just like the last time. "You okay?"Rachel shook her head no and began to cry as Puck pulled her to his chest. "Just let it out. Let it go." Puck again took Rachel home, but this time they both went inside. They were snuggled on the couch watching a movie. Puck got up to get something to eat, jarring Rachel, and she cried out. Puck whipped around and knelt next to her with a worried expression on his face. "What? What is it?" He noticed she was holding her shoulder where Finn had hit her today. He pulled her hand and her shirt sleeve aside so he could see. A dark bruise covered the area of her shoulder blade and collarbone. "Oh, Rach."

"It's not that bad."

"You need to see someone."

"What are you talking about?"

"Come on. Let's go."

Puck could tell she was hurting, so he was taking her to his mom. She was a nurse and would know what to do.

"You're fragile, Rachel. It makes it easy for these things to happen." Rachel had dislocated her collar bone where it met her shoulder.

"Mom!"

"What? Oh! That's not what I meant, honey. I meant that if you get hit or fall, things like that, you are likely to be injured because you are so small and your bones are fragile. Not a bad thing."

Rachel smiled. "I know what you meant."

"Rachel is staying here tonight, okay mom?"

"What about-?"

"Her dads are out of town."

His mother did not hesitate after that answer. "Of course, Noah."

"Thanks, Ma." Puck kissed his mother and grabbed Rachel's hand, dragging her upstairs to his room, being careful of her injury. Once they were settled on his bed, Puck held Rachel tightly to him, singing 'Sweet Caroline' to her quietly. By the time he had finished Rachel was asleep. Puck covered them both up and snuggled deeper into the sheets with Rachel still in his arms.

Rachel woke up the next morning with fire in her shoulder. Her squirming woke Puck and he smiled before realizing why Rachel had woken up. He quickly gave her a pain pill his mother had waiting for him when he sprinted down the stairs. After a while, he felt and saw her relax.

"You okay?"  
"Physically, yes. Emotionally, well that's another story."

"I saw his face, Rach. He did it on purpose."

"I trust you Noah. It's just hard to digest."

"You trust me?"

"With my life." Puck smirked and they sat in silence for a moment, then Puck got out of bed.

"Come on. We have school." Rachel laughed and got up. They had breakfast, made by Noah's mom, and Puck drove them to school. Before they got to the double doors, Puck grabbed her gently. "Wait."

"Is something wrong, Noah?"

"No. It's right. Will you be with me Rachel?"  
"Be with you? Like-?"

"Like be my girlfriend."

"Is that the Noah Puckerman way of asking me out?"

"Is that the Rachel Berry way of saying yes?"

They both smiled and said yes at the same time and Puck grabbed her hand as he opened the front doors of the school for her, and they began to walk down the hallway together, holding hands. They gave each other small, knowing smiles when they noticed how everyone was staring at them as they walked by.


	3. My Girl

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of it's characters

Chapter 3

My Girl

Puck and Rachel were making out heavily when the bell rang. Rachel broke away, "We have to get to class, Noah. See you at Glee!" She hurried off before anything could be said. Puck just smiled and thought _that's my girl._

Finn waited for Rache after 3rd period. "Hey."  
"What do you want, Finn?" Rachel said it coldly.

"Can we just talk?" Rachel thought about it for a few moments.

"I guess. Quickly. I have some things I need to get done in study hall this period."

Finn nodded and they walked into the Glee room. He didn't even give Rachel a moment to speak before he closed the door and turned to her. "What is the problem?"

"What?"

"I never meant to hurt you, Rachel. I'm sorry. I don't know what else you want me to say."

"I don't wish for you to say anything else."

"Obviously you do, or you wouldn't be with Puck."  
"Noah has nothing to do with this!"

"Oh really? Then why did I get a black eye for something that was an accident?"

"Maybe you deserved it! You did hit me in the eye first, maybe Noah was simply repaying the deed!"

Finn lost it. Really lost it. He grabbed Rachel around the throat and slammed her against the nearest wall. She clawed at his hands but couldn't get him to move them.

"Knock off the attitude, tell Puck and everyone else it was an accident. Tell them you overreacted, they will believe it, it's not unusual. Tell them everything between us is fine, if you do that and it really will be."

Rachel was having a hard time breathing and Finn dropped her just before she was about to black out. She closed her eyes, leaned back against the wall and just cried. Finn shut the lights off and left the room as Rachel just continued to sob. A few minuted later, she heard the door open and close again and gasped. She assumed it was Finn and he was coming back to hurt her again.

Puck had a free period (well, most were for him because he usually skipped class.) and wanted to learn a new song for Rachel. He wanted to sing it to her in Glee and really tell Finn where to put it. He walked into the Glee room to hear quiet sobbing and then a gasp as the door closed behind him. "Hello?" Puck was trying to figure out where exactly the sound was coming from because he couldn't see anyone. "Noah?" Puck froze. "Rach?" He flicked on the lights and couldn't believe it was Rachel. She never cried. "I'm right here." He turned and saw her slowly standing from where she had been leaning against the wall. She ran to him and he held her tightly. "What the hell happened, baby? What are you doing in here?" Rachel just cried harder and when she began to go limp, Puck lifted her into his arms and carried her right out of the school and to his truck. He set her inside and buckled her in before pulling away from the school. He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips and held it tightly. "I saw your neck. Who hurt you, honey?"

"Promise you won't do anything. It will just make it worse." Puck pulled over. They were almost to his place, but his anger had taken over and he couldn't take it anymore. He pulled her across the bench seat to hold her. "You have to know that I will never let him hurt you or even come near you again. Now tell me who did this to you, Rachel?"

"Finn." Puck made a noise from the back of his throat that sounded like a growl. "He was upset and said that I was being too dramatic over everything that has happened. He was yelling at me and then he started talking badly about you and I got upset. I talked back to him and he just got angrier."

"I'm gonna kill him. I'm going to rip him apart with my bare hands."

"It will just make things worse, Noah. Let's just let it go, okay? Forget it ever happened. Everyone will be better off that way."  
"No it won't. No, let's not just let it go. I can't just forget it happened and everyone will not be better off if we do."  
"Noah-"  
"But we won't talk about it for now."  
"Where are we going?"

"Home." Puck said it in a way that had Rachel feeling and thinking like it was her home too. But it wasn't. "Your home you mean." Puck looked at her with a strange expression on his face. "I want you to start thinking of it as your home too. My mom loves you." Rachel smiled at the thought of his mom. "I love her too. But having me think about your home that way and feel that way about your mom would mean I am going to be around for a long time? Are you sure you want to get this serious? Or be serious at all?" "Rachel, you are my girl. So yes. I want you to feel that way about our home and our family. And I want you to trust me to take care of you and protect you. Most of all, I want you to believe that I can keep you safe and believe that I will do whatever I have to in order to make sure you stay protected."


	4. Hudson

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of it's characters

Chapter 4

Hudson

Puck's mom had no problem with Puck and Rachel sleeping in the same bed. This surprised her because she knew her son, much better than he thought she did. She did not even allow him to have girls over, but she sound herself not only liking Rachel, but thinking of her as a part of the family. She was beginning to love her like a daughter. It made her very proud of her son. And while she was upset at what the Hudson boy had done to Rachel, it wasn't all bad. It had been the kick Noah a nd Rachel had needed to realize how much they cared for each other.

Puck was lying in bed, absently stroking Rachel's hair and thinking about everything. She was already asleep and Puck smiled down at her. He was in love with her and that scared him more than he could say. Badasses don't get scared, so no one would ever know that. He just felt this surge of protective instincts whenever he was around her. He would kill Hudson. (Once he decided to kick someone's ass and they were no longer friends, they got called by their last name.) Puck had never told Rachel he wouldn't do anything and this shit was not going to be let go. Hell. No. Come tomorrow, Hudson would be history.

"Rach. Babe, let's go. You're going to tarnish your perfect attendance record if you don't get your ass up right now." Rachel groaned. "I already did by skipping school with you yesterday. What's just one more day?" Puck put his hands together over his heart and pretended to be shocked as he let out a little gasp and looked towards the ceiling. "Oh my god, I'm going to have a heart attack. I have turned Rachel 'never misses a single day of school' Berry into an amateur bad ass."

Rachel giggled and pulled Puck down by his hand. "Yes you have and now there is no going back. Puck." He narrowed his eyes and leaned his head down towards hers until their lips were mere centimeters apart. Rachel thought he was about to kiss her and leaned her head up a bit. She could feel his breath when he spoke. "That's Noah to you babe." He pulled back and pulled a shirt out of the closet as Rachel gasped at him. She got out of the bed, upset that she had fallen for it so easily. Puck just looked at her with that trouble making smirk on his face. "Besides, who says I want to go back?" He moved over to her quickly and placed his lips over hers in a passionate kiss.

Puck and Rachel got to school on time and Puck kissed her, promising to meet up at lunch. Finn came to school late and Puck didn't find him until right before lunch, at his locker. "Hey, Hudson." Finn whipped around and gave Puck a questioning look. "Um, hey, Puck. What's up?" Before he could blink, Puck had punched him in the jaw. "What's up? You touched my girlfriend, that's what's up." Finn stood up slowly and glared at Puck. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't know what Rachel told you, but you have to listen to me."

"Rachel told me the truth. And today, Hudson, you're finally going to pay."

Finn was more prepared this time and hit Puck back as hard as he could. The boys were pummeling each other and teachers began to come out of their classrooms and debate on how to stop this.

News traveled fast. Rachel heard about a fight going on in the hallway and had a sinking feeling she knew who it was that was involved. She ran out and was unhappy with being correct. She ran at the boys and grabbed one of Finn's arms because he was on top of Puck. "Finn! Please stop it!" He threw his arm back, not thinking about anything but hitting Puck, and Rachel hit the wall and began to see black on the edges of her vision. She had hit her head off the tiles on the wall.

Puck heard Rachel and pulled away from Hudson. Then he saw her hit the wall and slide down. "Rachel!" Finn heard the scared tone Puck had said her name in and backed away, stunned. Puck shoved him as hard as he could. He knelt down next to her. "Rach? Baby, can you hear me?" Puck stroked her cheeks and held her body close to his. A couple teachers grabbed Finn and pulled him into a room while they had the chance and others went to get the nurse. The rest of them stood around Puck and Rachel silently, not really knowing what else to do with themselves. "Rachel, come on, babe." Rachel groaned and opened her eyes to look at Puck. "Noah? Are you okay?" She sat up quickly. "Where's Finn?" Puck shushed her and told her to take it easy. "Relax, babe. Hudson's gone. The douche is probably going to jail at the end of the day." Rachel wrapped her arms around him and he did the same. What she said next came out muffled, but he understood. "Why are you calling him Hudson instead of Finn?"  
"Because, Hudson and I are no longer friends. He doesn't deserve me calling him by his first name, so Hudson it is."


	5. Or

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of it's characters

Chapter 5

Or

The nurse checked out Rachel and said she was fine to go home. Puck had a nice pack on his eye and a bloody lip. All three of them were in trouble, though Rachel didn't see how she had done anything wrong. "Rach, quit pouting, we're going to be fine."

He was wrong.

The deal was this: If Rachel chose to press charges against Finn, then he would press charges against Noah. If she let it go, it all went away. Press charges or let it go. Get back at Finn or keep Noah with her. Or. Everything was one or the other. No charges were pressed. But principal Figgins couldn't 'have this kind of behavior at his school.' So all three of them were suspended for a week to 'think about what they had done.'

Rachel stormed out of the school to find Noah waiting by his truck for her. "I love you."  
"What?"

"I. Love. You. Shit, for a smart girl you can be pretty damn dumb." He said it with a grin. Rachel could let that one go or prolong the torture.

"Is now really the best time to make that declaration?"

"Yes. You could have gotten sweet revenge on Hudson, or protect me. You knew if you pressed charges you would not be in any trouble. Your perfect permanent record would remain exceptional. You chose to tarnish it. Sixteen years of hared work. Ruined. For me."

"Or maybe I am just sick of being perfect all of the time."

"Or you love me too." He was grinning as a smile slowly began spreading across her face too.

"Or I love you too." Puck ran and picked her up in his arms and spun her around. Then he froze as Finn came walking out of the building. Puck put her down and gave her a little shove toward the parking lot. "Rachel go to the truck."

"No." She said it with fear in her eyes. "Not until you go too."

"Adorable. Really" Finn said snidely. Puck growled.

"Shut it, Hudson. You wanna finish this now?"

"What the hell is even your problem. It's done and over with."

"You have to be joking. Twice. You hit Rachel, my girlfriend in Glee practice twice, and-"

"By accident. Yes I smirked the second time. It doesn't mean it wasn't an accident. Maybe I was just a little bit happy that she wasn't perfect. She had moved wrong and messed up the move."

"Fine, Hudson. Sure, you're right. Or maybe you're full of shit. What bout cornering her in the Glee room?" His face went pale. "I-I just wanted to talk and she kept yelling crap at me. I grabbed her and told her to shut up and she friggin' kicked me."

"And that's grounds to put your hands on her throat? To put your hands on her at all?" Puck made a sound of disgust and put his arm around Rachel's wait and led her to the truck.

Puck's mom was not angry about the suspension but proud. He had done what was necessary to protect someone he loved. Rachel had given up her squeaky clean record and pride to let Finn off the hook because she wanted to keep Noah safe. She loved him as much as he loved her. She just hoped her son realized how hard it must have been for Rachel. She shook her head and went to get ready for work after leaving a note for Noah and Rachel for when they got home.

Puck let out a sigh of relief that his mom was not home. He and Rachel walked into his house after stopping by hers for more clothes. Her dads had comforted her and told her they were proud, not angry. Puck figured they would hate him after today. When they had hugged him and thanked him, he had been confused. There was a note from his mom and he was smiling by the time he read the end of it as Rachel returned from putting her stuff away upstairs. "What?"

"My mom left us a note. She is proud of us and hopes we both realize how lucky we are to have each other. Dinner is in the fridge and she loves both of us and hopes we are still up when she gets home."

Rachel gave him one of her famous bright smiles. "Well, I know how lucky I am."

"I thought I was the luckiest guy in Lima when you forgave me for throwing the slushies at you and torturing you every day. The luckiest guy in Ohio when you agreed to be my friend. Then I thought I was the luckiest guy in the country when you told me you wanted to be my girlfriend. Now I not only think, but I know, that I am the luckiest guy in the world since you told me you loved me back like I love you."

Rachel wiped away her tears and had a huge smile on her face as she looked at him. "That was the sweetest and most beautiful thing anyone has ever said to me. You have no idea what an amazing man you are, Noah Puckerman." She ran up and kissed him with her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, babe."

"You're welcome and, oh, by the way..."

"What?" Puck was still holding her but she broke away and started running up the stairs. "That's going in our wedding vows. Well yours anyway." Puck laughed, then realized what she had just said, and the smile died. "Wait, what?" He ran up the stairs after her.


	6. Suffer

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of it's characters

Chapter 6

Suffer

Rachel woke up and was about to get ready for school when she remembered she had been suspended for a week. Rachel wondered about Glee and how much missing practice would hurt them. When Puck finally woke up, he reached over to grab Rachel and pull her to him when he realized she wasn't there. He then heard people downstairs and decided to investigate.

Rachel had brought Glee to her home so they could practice. Mr. Schue was going to stop by after school. They all got quiet and Rachel quickly realized why. "Good afternoon, Noah."

"Babe, what is all this?"

"I was thinking that Glee would suffer severely if three of it's members would not be there for a whole week. So, I talked to Mercedes and she and Kurt handled everything." Puck walked up to her and kissed her. When he pulled away, everyone was staring and smiling, but Puck didn't care. "You really are a genius Rach." Rachel smiled and grabbed onto him, kissing him again. "Thank you Noah." Then Mercedes' phone rang, and as she continued talking, her face dropped.

Finn hadn't been invited and had spun some line of crap to Santana and Quinn. They weren't coming, so neither was Brittany. Four members they were down and Puck had not idea what to do now. He just knew he wanted Hudson to suffer. Rachel had told everyone there was no point and to just go home. She had looked heartbroken when she had gone upstairs. Rachel was already suffering, so Hudson needed to suffer worse. Puck told his mom everything and she told him to get his butt upstairs and comfort his girlfriend because she needed him right now. Puck ran up the stairs and opened his bedroom door. At first, he thought she was asleep but then he saw her shoulders shake. Rachel Berry was not only crying, she was silently sobbing. And it was breaking his heart. Puck slid into the bed next to her and pulled her to him. She turned over and clutched him to her and Puck just held her until she fell asleep.

The next morning, Puck jumped out of bed as soon as his mom left for work. He left the house quietly with Rachel sleeping soundly upstairs. When Puck got out of the truck he was good and pissed. When Finn oopened the door, Puck had a hard time not hitting him. "What the hell do you want, Puck?"

"Just to talk, Hudson."

"So talk."

"You lied about what went down between you and Rachel. I don't care how you got Quinn and Santana to believe you or why you lied about it in the first place, but I do care that you did it. Stay away from Rachel. Do you understand?"  
"I haven't gone near her."

"Don't screw with her life, either." Puck turned and walked away before Hudson could say anything more. Puck needed to blow off steam, so he left a message telling Rachel he would be home later and went to the gym.

Rachel was getting extremely bored. Puck was out, and she had no car to go anywhere. So she took a nap, waiting for Noah or his mom to get home. Rachel didn't know what woke her up, but the shades were pulled and the room was dark. "Noah?"

"Nope." Rachel gasped.

"Finn, what are you doing?"

"Well, Rachel, Puck came by to see me this morning. Really served to piss me off. Told me to leave you alone or that I would suffer, basically. So instead, he's not here and it's me that's going to make you suffer."


	7. The Consequences

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of it's characters

Chapter 7

The Consequences

Puck was getting tired and realized that he was being selfish. Rachel was home alone and probably pretty upset with him by now. He was almost home when he saw the familiar truck in the driveway. What used to be a welcome sight was now a nightmare. He knew something was going down in his house and was worried for Rachel. But he knew he had to be smart and called the cops. The guy he talked to told him they would come quietly and everything would be fine. The sound of glass breaking ended the waiting for Puck. It had only lasted about thirty seconds.

Rachel threw the small lamp, but Finn ducked and it shattered against the wall. "This little game of chase is losing it's charm, Rachel."

"Why, because the big jock can't catch the injured girl?"

Finn growled and ran at her. She tried to dodge towards the back of the couch, but he caught her around the waist and slammed her down on the floor. "These are the consequences of your boyfriend's actions."

Then Finn was gone and Rachel heard fists against flesh. "And these are the consequences of yours."

Rachel grabbed her phone as they fought, but found no need as police began running into the house and pulling the boys apart and restraining them. Rachel ran to Puck and held on. The officers let him go as they shoved Finn into the back of one of their cars. Puck pushed Rachel away from him. "Are you okay? And don't lie to me Rachel." He wiped blood off the corner of her mouth with his thumb.

"I'm bruised, but I really am all right."  
"I could have lost you." Puck pulled her close again and didn't let go. Rachel had refused treatment from the EMTs, insisting she was fine. The cop Puck had talked to said their parents had been called and were on the way. Puck nodded his head and told thtem they were fine and it was okay to leave. Puck started walking to the couch, pulling Rachel with him when she began to fall. "Rachel!" Puck grabbed her before she hit the floor. "I'm fine. Just tired and bruised." Puck picked her up in his arms and sat on the couch with her in his lap. She was asleep by the time their parents came in and Puck explained everything. They left the kids alone and went into the kitchen to discuss everything. Puck carried Rachel to bed and fell asleep shortly after covering them both up

The Next Week...

Rachel's bruises had faded and she stayed at Puck's most nights. Finn w as in a detention center and may be tried as an adult. Glee gained a new member but it was a girl so Puck ended up replacing Finn. It turned out to be better than ever and they came in first place, beating Vocal Adrenalin. Puck and Rachel went through school acting as though they were the only two people in the world. Nobody messed with Rachel because they knew if they did, they would suffer the consequences. People actually treated Rachel better and soon found they actually really liked her and before she knew it, she had real friends, was popular, and had the best and hottest boyfriend in the world.


End file.
